The Pianist
by missmerrymak
Summary: Emma shows up at Regina's house one Friday evening wanting to talk. However, when she sees the mayor's piano she gets caught up in bittersweet memories and Regina shows Emma that Henry's not the only one she can be soft for. Pre-SQ


"Would you two like to be alone?" A gravelly voice drawled from the doorway and Emma jumped, quickly turning around to find Regina leaning against the door frame with an ankle crossed over the other and her arms folded over her chest. Not surprisingly, she had an eyebrow raised and a pointed smirk on her face.

"I—I was just admiring…" Regina hummed in the back of her throat, cutting off Emma's halfhearted protests. The raven haired woman pushed herself off of the smooth wooden frame and stalked over to the blonde; the loud click of Regina's heels accompanied by the intense ringing in Emma's ears made her swallow and back away from the brunette. She'd never really been intimidated by the mayor before but after catching her in the act, so to speak, all she currently wanted to do was sink into the floor and disappear forever.

"You don't have to explain yourself to me Miss Swan." Regina assured Emma whose throat felt oddly thick under the other woman's intense stare. "The molestation of my piano is your own business." Regina eyed her with a judging and pointed stare. "I'm not saying I approve…" She trailed off as Emma felt a hot blush creep up her neck.

It was true that she'd been admiring Regina's piano. It was also true that she might have been stroking it a little questioningly. However, it wasn't often she saw an instrument in as pristine condition as the one before her. As she glanced back at the sharp black grand piano the blush drained from her face and she smiled softly. "Your piano is beautiful. I was just—" she swallowed and tried to find a word that wouldn't ensue any teasing from Regina, "venerating your choice in musical pursuits." Regina's nose turned up curiously at Emma's thought out statement and mulled over her choice in words.

"Wow, Miss Swan," Regina began calmly. "I've never heard you put something so…eloquently." She tilted her head down. "Even if it was only a partial truth." Emma scoffed and turned back to the piano, gazing at it with something akin to longing. The mayor furrowed her brow and cocked her head at Emma but didn't say anything. She wondered, innocently of course, what Emma found so alluring in the piano. Considering how she was looking at the instrument Regina could only assume that there was some sort of gravitational pull towards the object.

"Well, I…" Emma couldn't seem to find the words to finish her sentence with Regina's firm gaze zeroed in on her and she trailed off, caught between glancing at the piano and Regina. The raven haired woman could tell that Emma was feeling uncomfortable and gently sighed, holding up a hand to stop the blonde.

"Like I said, if you would prefer not to," She muttered the last part almost reluctantly. _Soft_ was not her thing, and when it came to Emma it was even more difficult to make an exception. "You do not have to explain yourself to me." The blonde couldn't help the appreciative gaze that slipped through her carefully constructed mask and Regina, silly as it was, enjoyed her momentary openness.

The mayor used the silence between them to walk to a desk near the piano and pour both of them a drink. For a moment, Regina felt Emma's eyes on her but as quickly as the feeling arose it was gone. Curiously, she turned around momentarily and found the savior's eyes on the piano once more, her fingers grazing the wood delicately. It figured, Regina supposed, after all, the temptation in her gaze was quite obvious. "It won't bite you, Miss Swan." Regina told the blonde, almost sarcastically, with a shake of her head and Emma's lips quirked up momentarily but there was unmistakable pain in her gaze.

"Yeah," Emma muttered before tearing her eyes from the instrument and focusing on Regina who held out a tumbler for her. She took it and eyed the amber liquid swirling around the bottom of the glass before taking a slow sip. Raising her eyebrows in mild surprise she looked up at Regina. "I didn't take you for the hard liquor type, madam mayor." Regina smirked and looked down into her glass before meeting Emma's eyes.

"There are a lot of things you don't know about me, Miss Swan." The comment made Emma's throat go dry and she hid her blush in another sip of whiskey. Though the statement wasn't intended to be in the sexual context Emma was assuming, Regina still felt rather self-conscious about it now that the blonde had pointed out the possible double meaning to her words. Regina practically lived in the realm of double meanings, however, this might have been the first time she hadn't considered all of possibilities—a truly accidental mistake.

"The same could be said for me." Emma breathed, setting the tumbler down on a nearby coffee table. Regina was grateful for Emma's thoughtful cover up but refrained from showing it. Then, as if the duration of Emma's visit to Regina's house had been leading up to this very moment, the blonde sat down on the piano bench. The action wasn't meant to be ceremonious but considering how Emma had been acting around the instrument, Regina couldn't interpret it any other way.

"Can you play?" Regina wondered aloud, walking up next to Emma and placing a hand on the top of the piano casually as she set her whiskey down next to the blonde's. Emma hummed vaguely as she ran her fingers along the keys but didn't press down. "May I sit?" The mayor breathed and wordlessly Emma slid over to accommodate the raven haired woman. Emma was keeping her lips tightly sealed and Regina looked at the blonde curiously. Emma seemed to bring out Regina's soft side because her next words tumbled from her lips uncontrollably. "Would you like me to play something?"

Emma hesitated on an answer as she shifted on the bench and Regina couldn't help but wonder why. "What can you play?" Regina chuckled and shook her head almost accusingly.

"Does it matter?" Emma frowned and shrugged. Regina, immediately realizing her mistake, sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. The mayor watched the blonde swallow thickly and forced down an exasperated groan, not at Emma but at herself. One thing she still needed to work on was the recognition of complicated emotions _before_ she did something she'd regret. The piano, for whatever reason, was obviously a sensitive subject for the blonde and Regina was trying to be better, she really was. "Forgive me, I was being…insensitive." The corner of Emma's lips quirked up at her sincere, though pained, apology and she shook her head.

"Don't worry about it." Emma inhaled deeply. "I know you're wondering what's up with Emma and her piano fetish." She joked halfheartedly and Regina smirked but chose not to comment. Despite her cold exterior, Regina did care about people. She cared about Emma—though she doubted that she'd ever admit it. "It's a long story." She took another breath as Regina cocked her head innocently. "I had this foster family when I was about six or seven." Emma glanced at Regina but then quickly looked back at the keys. "They were the nicest people I had ever met." Emma breathed painfully, her eyebrows furrowing in remembrance. "And the woman was _so_ gorgeous. Every time she hugged me or kissed me or told me I was beautiful I just felt so loved and appreciated. It was an entirely new feeling. In my whole life no one had ever said things like that to me before." Emma admitted, staring down at the hands resting in her lap. "On Sunday afternoons she and I would sit in the family room and she would play the piano _all_ day. And I would just look at her like she was the most amazing person in my world—and I supposed at the time she was." Emma sighed. "They were the best days of my life." She said simply.

"What happened?" Regina asked hoarsely, no hint of judgment or accusation in her voice.

"She got pregnant. They had a kid of their own and they gave me back." The way Emma's voice rose at the end of her sentence made it clear that if they talked about this anymore the blonde was going to cry. Regina wanted to place her hand on top of Emma's and rub her thumb along the back of her hand but the mayor doubted that the blonde would appreciate that. So instead she settled for a gentle ghosting of her palm over Emma's forearm; a subtle gesture, but just enough for it to be known that she was there if Emma needed her. It was surprisingly open for the brunette and it even surprised herself but both of them easily went along with it.

Regina thought about voicing a sympathetic apology but Emma wouldn't like that either. She would tell Regina that she had nothing to be sorry about and then promptly shut her out. If there was one thing she knew about the savior it was that when things got too emotional she shut down. So instead, Regina savored the rare moment of raw emotion Emma was letting her see and stayed silent. "I think you'll like this." Regina said, glancing at the blonde as she set her fingers atop the keys and scooted closer to Emma so she could reach the pedal on the ground between them.

The melody that echoed through the cold, empty house was somehow haunting yet comforting at the same time. It was a warm song, but it was like it had a dark side as well that only came out when certain cords were struck. If she was to be honest, the song reminded Emma of Regina. Looking at the woman now, the blonde noticed that Regina's eyes were closed and her brow furrowed. Bangs falling into her face she looked one with the music. Regina, feeling the blonde's eyes on her, opened her own to find green irises staring back. Her painted lips curved up just slightly at Emma's flustered look, as if it was completely uncouth for her to be _looking_ at Regina. The mayor didn't think she was that polished, was she?

Without saying a word the song continued but the atmosphere in the room was different. It was almost tense and Regina didn't want it to be. Emma had done nothing wrong. Maybe it was her continual Evil Queen persona that drove people to relentlessly believe that if they looked at her the wrong way she'd turn them to dust but whatever the cause, Regina would like it to stop. She's a changed person, something that even Snow had come to recognize, and she'd like for Emma to fully realize it too.

The blonde had never seen Regina as the Evil Queen so she was weary of the mayor instead. This, in some respects, made the brunette's quest to show Emma she was truly good even more difficult. On the other hand, Regina did understand that Emma not only had the town to look out for but her son as well—their son. Still lost in her thoughts and knowing the piece by heart, Regina didn't even notice herself transitioning into the next part of the song. It was tense and closed but beautiful all the same; it reminded Regina of Emma.

When the song came to a close Emma gave Regina a small smile and took a deep breath. "Beautiful." She breathed, gazing at the brunette who suddenly felt uncomfortable and hot under her stare. "The song was really gorgeous, Regina." Emma clarified and the brunette tilted her head with a modest smile. The blonde shifted on the bench. "Despite all the afternoons I spent getting lost in amazing music like this I never bothered to learn a single note." Regina furrowed her brow and let her hands rest in her lap.

"Why not; I'm sure you'd be excellent at it. You've got the hands, dear." Regina supplied breezily, grazing Emma's fingers with her own casually. Emma shrugged and tensed up as she adjusted herself on the seat, awkwardly brushing off the compliment, and Regina noticed.

"It was silly really." Emma chuckled, trying to downplay whatever was bothering her but Regina was persistent with her gently patient gaze. The blonde sighed as the tense atmosphere dissipated. "I just thought that I'd screw it up. I didn't want to taint her flawless music with my banging on the keys. I don't think I ever touched that piano actually." Regina furrowed her brow but didn't say anything for a while, just thought.

Regina knew she should be angry with the blonde for appearing in her house on a Friday evening for reasons still currently unknown but she just couldn't seem to bring herself to care. The brunette was actually quite enjoying Emma's company, despite the seriousness of their talk. The two of them had never really gotten a change to spend any time alone together and it was strangely nice to not feel pressured by the town to act a certain way around each other.

"I could teach you if you'd like." Regina supplied casually, raising a shoulder in questioning and Emma raised her brow and turned to look at the brunette. She swallowed and quickly shook her head as she placed her hands on the bench.

"No, thank you though." She sighed, gazing at the keys longingly as if willing them to make the same kind of magic it had with Regina. "Not tonight." She conceded, giving into a long repressed desire Regina had suspected had been there since the beginning of the night. However, the brunette understood that the emotional charge in the room was enough to make anyone want to take a breather.

Emma seemed uncomfortable on the bench as she continued to shift around on it, occasionally bumping Regina's shoulder so finally the brunette decided to bring it up, effectively changing the subject. "The bench seems a bit hard for you, dear. Why don't we move to the couch?" Emma swallowed and briefly looked Regina over before grimacing.

"No, it's not the bench I think it's me. _You're_ not uncomfortable." She pointed out and Regina chuckled in the back of her throat, a sound that made something tingle deep inside the blonde.

"That's because I don't slouch like a Neanderthal." She bit, half-jokingly and half seriously. Emma raised an eyebrow as Regina parted her lips and looked to Emma's torso. And then suddenly a hand was on the blonde's lower back and the other on her stomach. Emma's breathing hitched and the muscles in her abdomen unconsciously tightened. Regina swallowed and tried to pay it no mind. "You have to sit up straighter and then your back won't hurt as much. Good posture is also the key to a good pianist." Regina pointed out as Emma straightened up. As the brunette quickly realized that her hands no longer needed to be on Emma she pulled away.

The blonde just looked at Regina who was staring back firmly but not harshly. It made the muscles in Emma's core tighten and she wondered what the hell was going on with her. Regina swallowed as she realized Emma was looking at her lips. Consciously or not, it was happening. The brunette's heart hammered in her chest as she realized Emma had grown rather close to her. Regina's mind went blank as she felt Emma's hot breath on her face. Their shoulders were touching now and practically their foreheads as well. Was this really happening? What was Emma thinking? What was _she_ thinking?

In response to her hesitant thoughts Regina sighed gently as her eyes rose to Emma's whose were focused on her red lips. "Why did you come here, Miss Swan?" Regina asked; her tone had returned to its usual emotionless drawl and Emma's breathing abruptly stopped. The blonde licked her lips and leaned back, her face flushed from something in between embarrassment and the result of such close proximity. She examined the mayor's now cool face and bit the inside of her cheek, a wave of rejection and bitter realization washing over her. Emma had overstepped her bounds and completely misread the situation. And now she also felt like a complete idiot for opening herself up to the mayor like she had.

Contrary to her icy exterior though, Regina was internally screaming at herself and questioning why the hell she did the things she did. Maybe she was afraid of change, maybe she was afraid of being happy, or maybe she was afraid of what would happen if she'd kissed Emma. What if she ruined something? What if Emma was just going to lead her on and then realize she wanted someone else, like Hook?

As Regina stared at Emma's now placid expression and hidden emotions she realized that she was acting like the sheriff. She was afraid of screwing things up and she was afraid of rejection so she refused to act. "Henry." Emma breathed, her voice void of emotion, and Regina swallowed as she realized something else: she was scared of hurting Henry. "I wanted to talk about how his rotation is going to work: a week with you a week with me?"

"That sounds fine." Regina found herself saying. Emma swallowed and nodded awkwardly.

"So are we okay then?"

_No_ "Yes."


End file.
